fisher@wsgate.DEC (Burns Fisher, MRO3-1/E13, DTN 231-4108.) (08/15/85)
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Has anyone heard of a polar orbiting satellite (spy, weather, etc) reentry
about 2345 12-AUG-85 EDT? (0445 13-AUG UT???) I was out looking for
Perseids meteors when I saw what appeared to be a very large meteor going
approx. South to North. It was much brighter than Jupiter, which was also
visible. It left a noticable trail behind it for several seconds, it covered
about 45 degrees of arc in 3 to 5 seconds, and I heard nothing. There appeared
to be pieces breaking off, although I would not swear to this.
At first I thought it was just an unusually large meteor, but was I saw more
"real" meteors in the next 15-20 minutes, I began to wonder. The big one
was not going anywhere near a radial direction from Perseus, while the others
were to some extent. The S-N direction made me think it might be a polar
orbitting satellite, and the fact that it would reenter made me think it would
be in a fairly low orbit, and thus probably a spy satellite.
Any comments or ideas?
Burns
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